The Return of Samantha Mulder
by DaynaFoxe
Summary: Samantha Mulder is returned to the place she was taken, 27 years later to the day, but she is still an 8 year old child. How does Mulder cope with his sister being back, but now fulfilling the role of Father instead of brother, how can Samantha cope with the new world she finds herself in, and how does this affect Mulder and Scully's relationship, and the X-Files?
1. Chapter 1

Early Morning Hours of November 28th, 2000

The ringing of a phone broke through Fox Mulder's dreams. As usual, he dreamt of his sister Samantha, missing for 27 years now, since November 27th, 1973. He struggled to pull himself up out of sleep to answer the phone, the harsh sound drowning out his sister's voice as the dream faded away.

"Hello?" he asked as he picked up the phone, his voice groggy. He glanced at the digital display on his stove, just barely visible from his couch where he slept. It was 1:30 in the morning. "Yeah, this is Fox Mulder, who's calling?" His eyes suddenly widened in the darkness and when he spoke again all sleep was driven from his voice. "I'm on my way now."

Mulder drove to Martha's Vineyard alone. He had thought, briefly, of calling his FBI partner Dana Scully, but had dismissed the idea sometime between hanging up the phone and going to throw a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt on. This was a journey he had begun alone, and he needed to finish it alone. There would be time later to call Scully, if he needed to.

It was just before 10AM when Mulder walked into Martha's Vineyard Hospital. He had made what should have been more than a 9 hour drive in record time. The police officer who had called him, Lieutenant Reggie Davis, was waiting for him in the lobby. He held his hand out "Mr. Mulder. Thank you for coming down, we weren't expecting you for another hour or so yet."

Mulder shook the man's hand briefly, but he was clearly distracted. "Where is she?" he asked, looking around. His heart was beating too quickly now; he had to know if this was more trickery. Most of him already assumed that it was. He had given up years ago, really.

The officer suddenly looked uncomfortable. "Mr. Mulder, we seem to be having a slight, problem. We got a call last night, about midnight. The family who lives over at 2790 Vine Street were woken up by a little girl pounding on the front door. When Mrs. Avershaw opened the door, she said the little girl screamed and ran away from her. We went out to look around, and found a child, a girl approximately 7 or 8 years old, wandering around Vine Street barefoot, wearing a nightgown. When we asked her where she lived, she told us 2790 Vine Street, but that her parents weren't there when she knocked. Upon questioning her further, she told us that her name was Samantha Ann Mulder, and that she was born on November 21st, 1965." The police officer paused to see Mulder's reaction. Mulder looked at him impassively.

Seeing that the officer wasn't going to continue until he commented on what he had been told, Mulder nodded. "It's my sister's name and birth date. We grew up in Chilmark, at 2790 Vine Street. That's where we lived when Samantha disappeared in 1973."

"Yes, Mr. Mulder, I understand that. I've already been over the report that was initially filed after your sister's abduction, and the files pertaining to the search afterward. What I don't understand is a distraught little girl showing up out of nowhere in the middle of the night claiming to be someone who would be a 35 year old woman now." The officer paused and touched Mulder's arm gently. "Mr. Mulder, this can't be your sister. It's not possible. We called you here to identify that this girl is not who she says she is as a preliminary measure while we wait for DNA and dental comparisons to come in."

Mulder didn't answer him, but he did brush his hand over the cold picture frame in his pocket. Inside was a photograph of Samantha playing on a local playground the August before her disappearance. He had grabbed it on impulse as he went out the door.

The officer took Mulder to a room on the third floor. "Just look through the window, Mr. Mulder. You don't have to put yourself through anymore than that, I know this must be very difficult for you."

Mulder looked in the window. The fluorescent lights were harsh, and lit the room brightly. A little girl, tall for her age, with long dark hair sat on the examining table wearing a hospital gown. Her feet drummed against the table as she swung her legs nervously. At first her face was turned away, and Mulder's breath caught in his throat as she turned back to face forward and he could see her face. He stepped back from the door.

"Well Mr. Mulder?" Lieutenant Davis asked. "Can you give us your statement that that is not your sister?"

Mulder silently took the frame out of his pocket and popped the back open without showing the officer. "This is a picture of my sister, taken during the summer of 1973, a few months before she disappeared." Slowly Mulder turned the picture around and handed it to the officer. The officer's eyes widened in disbelief. The photograph, taken almost thirty years ago, was a picture of the same little girl that sat in the hospital room in front of them.

The next few hours went by in a blur. Mulder barely left the hallway outside of the hospital room, except for a brief stint to have his blood drawn to compare with the little girl's. He wasn't allowed in the room with her until the tests came back proving he was her relative. While he waited, several different officers came and went, asking her the same questions. Her story never wavered a bit.

" _What's your full name? Your birthday? Your address?"_

 _"Samantha Ann Mulder. November 22_ _nd_ _, 1965. 2790 Vine Street, Chilmark, Massachusetts."_

 _"Who are your parents? Do you have any siblings?"_

 _"Bill and Teena Mulder. I have a brother, Fox. He's twelve."_

 _"What is the last thing you remember? And when was it?"_

 _"I was playing Stratego with my brother before bed, last night I think. It was almost time for my movie to come on, the new John Wayne one, 'The Cowboys'. But Fox wanted to watch The Magician, and than there was a really bright light… and I don't remember anything after that, just opening my eyes and being outside my house. The door was locked, but Mom and Dad never lock it, and than there was some other lady there… When can I see my Mom and Dad?"_

Mulder's heart gave a little jolt every time she asked that question. Their Father had died five years before, and their Mother had passed away only a few months earlier. Sometimes the question was amended to include asking for her brother too, but mostly she was asking about her parents.

A woman in a white lab coat approached him. She held out her hand and smiled a Doctor's reassuring smile. "Hello, Mr. Mulder? My name is Doctor Greene, we have the results of your blood test."

Mulder shook her hand, his heart beat quickening again. "What's the result? Is it a match?"

The woman's smile slipped. "Yes, Mr. Mulder. It is a match. Not only for the DNA results, but we also ran her fingerprints. I can't begin to explain how, but she is who she says she is." The Doctor looked extremely uncomfortable. "She appears healthy, she was slightly dehydrated when she came in, but we gave her fluids immediately. The only oddity I found was in her body chemistry. It shows signs of extremely prolonged weightlessness. The only similar cases were found in early Soviet cosmonauts, and her cases is more severe. I haven't seen the atrophied muscle or bone loss that should accompany it, not to the degree it should, but there is a very mild sign of bone density loss and muscle tone loss that we wouldn't normally see in a healthy eight year old child."

"Will she be alright?" Mulder asked, looking at the Doctor intently. He wasn't sure that he could take hearing that she was irreparably damaged, not now.

Again the Doctor looked uncomfortable. "Mr. Mulder, from everything I know and can tell, yes, she will be. She should regain muscle mass and bone strength within a few weeks, she'll just need regular exercise and vitamins. However, I cannot explain why she is an eight year old girl, and not a woman in her thirties. It makes me hesitant to give her any prognosis at all, if I may be frank with you."

Mulder nodded. "I understand." He looked into her room again. "Can I see her now?"

The Doctor nodded. "Yes, you may. The police should be getting temporary custody in order for you, as next of kin, until you can petition the courts for a more permanent arrangement. I understand both of your parents have already passed on?"

Mulder nodded. "Yes, they have. We don't have any other family."

"I'm very sorry for your loss, Mr Mulder." Doctor Greene touched his arm gently. "You may want to begin getting affairs in order for your sister. They'll be no reason to keep her past tomorrow at the latest."

Mulder stood outside the door, his hand gripping the knob, unable to open the door. He had waited so long, he had dreamt of this, over and over again. But in all of those dreams he had never imagined finding Samantha like this, unchanged, still the same little girl he had last seen all those years ago. Only in the dreams implanted by John Lee Roche had he ever imagined finding Samantha still a child. Not even after finding the child drones on the Farm. Taking a deep breath, Mulder pushed the door open.

The little girl turned her head at the sound of the door opening. She had been laying back in the bed, looking out the window. She regarded the man entering the room impassively, with no hint of recognition.

Mulder licked his lips and smiled at the girl gently. "Hi Samantha." he said, sitting in a chair next to her bed. His legs felt like rubber, and he was afraid they would stop supporting him if he didn't sit.

Samantha returned the smile out of politeness. "Hello." She watched the man in silence, but he didn't say anything else. "Are you another cop?" she asked him. "Did you find my Mom and Dad yet? They only went next store, to visit the Galbrands. Did you ask the Galbrands where they went?"

 _Samantha, the Galbrands have both been dead for over 15 years…_ Mulder thought as he gazed at her. The Galbrands had been their next door neighbors when they were children, and had been at least thirty years older than their parents.

"No, I'm not a cop." Mulder said, and he smiled slightly. A peculiar look on Samantha's face told him that she saw something familiar in the expression. He leaned towards her. "Samantha, my name is Fox."

The little girl's face split into a bright smile. "Really!? My brother's name is Fox! I never met anyone else named Fox." Samantha's feet swung and clanged against the examination table. "I hope my parents and my brother come soon. I can't wait to tell them I met someone else named Fox."

Mulder licked his lips. "Samantha… my name is Fox Mulder. I _am_ your brother."

Samantha's smile turned to horror. "You… No you're not! You can't be! My brother is _twelve_! You, you're an old man! You're older than my _Dad_!"

Mulder was mildly taken aback. "I'm 39. Dad was 42 in 1973."

Samantha's lip curled and her eyebrow went up, her voice dripping with attitude. "Close enough. And anyway, you _look_ older than my Dad."

Mulder gazed at her, than smiled. She was just as he remembered her. Spunky, outspoken, a Grade-A smart-ass.

Samantha gazed at him, at his smile. Her face suddenly turned glum, and she looked away. "It's true, isn't it? They keep telling me it's 2000, not 1973, all those cops. I didn't believe them, but..." She looked back at Fox. "But you're my brother, I know you are. I can see it. And if you're my brother, than it can't be 1973 anymore." She looked up at the T.V. "All the shows are different too, and when the news came on, it said November 28th, 2000." Samantha looked into her brother's eyes. "What happened, Fox? Why did you grow up, and I didn't yet? Why don't I remember anything?"

Mulder froze for a moment. "I, don't know, Samantha. I'm sorry." They sat silently for a few minutes, Mulder alternating looking at his sister and down at the floor. Samantha swung her legs against the table absently. Finally she looked over at her brother.

"Fox, where are Mom and Dad? Do they know yet?"

Mulder knew he couldn't ignore it anymore. "Samantha… I'm sorry. Dad, Dad passed away five years ago, in 1995. And Mom died last February."

Samantha didn't meet his eye at first, and when she did he saw she was starting to cry. "Mom _and_ Dad, _died_?" she asked him, and it occurred to Mulder that Samantha had probably never really examined death before. The last of their grandparents had died when they were six and two, and Fox barely remembered them himself. Samantha couldn't have remembered them at all. They had never had any pets.

"I'm sorry, Samantha." Mulder repeated. He stood and tried to pat her awkwardly on the shoulder, unsure if the touch would frighten her. To his surprise, she immediately threw her arms around him. He stood stiffly for a moment, to shocked to move, than slowly hugged her back, gently, as though she might break, or disappear. A part of him suspected that this was all a very vivid dream, and he was still home, asleep on his couch. He raised one of his hands and patted her hair. It felt real to him.

Samantha cried, but only a little. It stopped before too long, but there was a sad, listless look on her face. "What happens now, Fox? Where do I go?"

Mulder smiled at her. "Well, I guess you come live with me now."

Samantha returned the smile. "Really?"

"Yeah, of course. Where else would you go?" Mulder asked. "I live in Washington, D.C. now, I work for the FBI."

Samantha's eyes went wide. " _Wow_ , you're an FBI agent, Fox? That's so far out! Just like the TV show?"

Mulder chuckled at her. It was jarring to hear someone use the lingo they used as kids so easily. "Yeah, I guess you could say it's like the show, sort of."

Just than the door opened. Brother and sister turned to see who opened it with twin looks of mildly surprised interest. It was Doctor Greene. "Mr. Mulder? I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to ask you to step out of the room for a bit. We need to evaluate your sister again, take some more blood work. And she does need her rest to re-regulate her body chemistry."

Mulder stood. "Yes Ma'am." He turned to Samantha. "I'll be back soon."

Samantha grabbed his arm as he started past her. "Fox!"

Mulder paused and looked back towards the little voice. He remembered it so well. It had sounded so similar the night she was taken, when the bright lights had come. "It's alright, Samantha. I promise."

Samantha relinquished his arm grudgingly. "Just don't go too far, okay, Fox?"

Mulder smiled at her. "I'll be right in the hall. You need me, you just holler, okay?"

Samantha seemed to relax a little and nodded. It was still one of the hardest things he had ever done for Mulder to walk out the door.

Mulder stood in the hallway, watching through the window. After looking Samantha over, Doctor Greene joined him, leaving the nurse to take the blood samples.

"She's taking it well I see." the doctor commented as she came to stand beside Mulder. Mulder nodded, not taking his eyes off his sister while there was someone else in the room.

"I suggest you get some clothing together for her." Doctor Greene told him, still looking into the room. "All she came in wearing was the nightshirt. We should be releasing her today, providing the blood work shows that she is stable." Though she didn't say it, Mulder could hear fear in the young doctor's voice. Part of the reason for Samantha's quick release was that some of the staff was rather uncomfortable being around her. Rumors were already flying about the 'spooky' little girl in Room 1113.

After the doctor walked away Mulder pulled out his cell phone. It was time for him to get Scully involved. "Scully, it's me."

* * *

It was a quarter after seven when Dana Scully walked into the hospital, a plastic bag of clothing in her hand. Her face had a serious set. She had received a call from Mulder at 1:30 that afternoon, asking her to buy a few outfits for an eight year old girl, a pair of size 6 sneakers, and a collection of John Wayne movies. He'd asked her to catch the first flight she could get to Martha's Vineyard, than meet him at Martha's Vineyard hospital.

That had been it. He hadn't explained anything more, just that she'd understand when she got there. And that was how Dana found herself walking down the hallway in Emergency. She rounded the corner and saw Mulder leaning his forearms against a window, staring intently into a room, so intently that he didn't notice her approach.

"Mulder?" she said, and he turned quickly. A smile spread across his face, a smile like she had never seen on him before. He beckoned her over and pointed into the room.

Scully squinted, the light was dimmed in the room so the patient could sleep, but as her eyes adjusted she began to make out the face. Her jaw dropped, and the plastic bag slipped from limp fingers, spilling its contents onto the hallway tiles. She turned to Mulder, trying to understand how it could be.

"Mulder… is that… but _how_?" she asked. Mulder's smile continued to shine. "I don't know, Scully. I don't know how, but it's her. They ran her fingerprints, and matched her DNA to mine."

"But where did they find her?" Scully asked, looking back into the hospital room. "Does she know anything about where she's been, or why, why she is, the way she is?"

Mulder stood beside her, looking into the room as well. "All she remembers is seeing a bright light. She said it was like she blinked, and she was standing outside our house. She thought it was the next night, at the latest."

"She knows who she is?" Scully asked.

Mulder nodded. "Yes, she remembers everything right up to when she disappeared. It's like time stood still for her for 27 years."

Scully watched the sleeping child. This little girl had been the catalyst for so much in her life. Had Samantha not been abducted, Mulder almost certainly would not have found the X-Files, and he certainly would not have been drawn to them the way he was. She would never have been assigned to work with Mulder, they never would have uncovered the conspiracy, the Shadow Syndicate… Scully had often thought to herself that taking Samantha had been the most foolish thing the Syndicate had ever done. It had awakened the slumbering beast in her brother, with a tireless desire to destroy them. She couldn't shake the thought that this was another one of their tricks. She turned to Mulder, opening her mouth to tell him so.

"Will you go over her records?" he asked, and Scully shut her mouth, taken aback. "I know the DNA matches, but you know what to look for to see if anything looks, off. I need to know if she's a clone, a hybrid, anything besides a normal, relatively normal, eight year old human girl." Mulder's gaze was intense.

Scully nodded. "Of course, Mulder." They both turned back to the room as Samantha rolled over in her sleep. Dana slipped her hand into Mulder's and gave it a comforting squeeze.

* * *

Samantha Mulder ended up being released shortly before 8AM. Scully was unable to find any anomalies in her blood work or any of the other tests she had been given, nothing to indicate she was a clone, or a hybrid. There were no metallic implants found in the full body scans, no abnormal brain wave patterns. Nothing. As Doctor Greene had said, the only thing unusual was a slight loss of muscle tone and bone density, and her electrolytes were minorly imbalanced, the way an astronauts might be after enduring prolonged weightlessness. She stood outside the Emergency room exit, holding her brother's hand, while they waited for Scully to pull the car around. She yawned sleepily; they had woken her so she could get dressed and leave.

Mulder opened the door for her when the car pulled up. Samantha looked nervously at the red-headed woman behind the wheel, than glanced back at her brother.

"Samantha, this is my friend, Dana. She's my Partner at the Bureau." Mulder told her gently.

Scully smiled at the little girl. "Hi Samantha. Your brother's told me a lot about you. It's nice to finally meet you."

Samantha returned the smile a bit bashfully. "Hi." she said quietly, as she climbed into the car.

Mulder and Scully had slept in the chairs in the waiting room for Emergency. Neither had gotten much sleep, but they had not talked much either, both too lost in their own thoughts. Now they had a long nine hour drive ahead of them. The drive was mostly spent in silence, Samantha watching a world she no longer knew pass before her. "Everything looks so, different." Samantha commented, looking at the cars.

Scully looked at the little girl in the rear view mirror. The girl was dressed in a lilac colored long-sleeve t-shirt with a hood and a pair of dark blue jeans with pink flowers embroidered on the bottom. The shirt was a little too baggy, and the jeans were too short for Samantha's long legs. The pink and white sneakers fit at least. "Are you feeling okay, Samantha?" Scully asked for the third time. Samantha nodded, than added "I'm hungry." Scully smiled at her in the mirror. "How about McDonald's?" For the first time, she saw the kid genuinely smile.

When they finally returned to the DC area, it was just after 6PM. Mulder dropped Scully off at her house.

"Bye Dana!" Samantha called sunnily from the backseat. They had bonded a bit over chicken nuggets and vanilla milkshakes, and Samantha's initial shyness was ebbing away.

Scully smiled at her. She had taken a genuine liking to the little girl. It amused her when Mulder and Samantha gestured similarly, or made a similar facial expression. Samantha was also the only person Scully'd ever met who could out-smart-ass Mulder with ease. It had been fun being able to team up against her partner for once.

"Bye Samantha, it was nice meeting you." Scully told her, waving. On impulse she added "Maybe if your brother says it's alright we can go shopping tomorrow, and find you some clothes that fit a little better."

Samantha bounced in the backseat. "Really? Can we Fox? _Please_?" Samantha asked, turning to her brother.

Mulder was disconcerted to see his own puppy dog gaze turned on him. "Yeah, sure. Why not?" he answered, folding quickly. He was already realizing that it was going to be extremely difficult to tell Samantha 'no' about anything.

"Yay!" Samantha yelled enthusiastically, making her brother's ear ring. Mulder didn't say a word, and barely winced when she turned away.

Scully smiled at the girl's reaction. 'I'll see you both tomorrow."

* * *

"Fox, where's all my stuff?" Samantha asked as Mulder pulled up to the curb outside his apartment.

Mulder killed the engine. "Well, Mom kept most of it. After I sold her house, I moved the stuff I didn't want to throw away to a storage unit."

"Did you keep my stuff?" Samantha asked, a strange sorrowful look in her eyes.

Mulder didn't answer immediately. He was thinking of going through the stuff in his Mother's home after she died. He had thrown most of it away, but he hadn't been able to part with Samantha's things. He had tried to, telling himself there was no reason to throw money away on a storage unit he didn't need, just to fill it with things that had belonged to a girl who had been gone for over a quarter of a century.

"Yes, I still have it." he answered softly. He looked at Samantha in the rear view mirror. "You want to go get it?" He couldn't help returning the expression when Samantha smiled and nodded vigorously.

It was already dark when they got to the U-Store lot, but it had 24/7 access. Mulder pulled up to one of the small outside units. Bright white flooded the area harshly, leaving only the corners with any shadows. The sound of the door rolling up sounded like thunder in the silent lot.

"Here, Samantha. These ones are yours." Mulder pulled several medium-size boxes out of the narrow unit. There was a mild sense of trepidation as Samantha opened one.

A large smile spread across Samantha's face. "My glove!" she said happily, pulling a well-worn beige baseball glove out of the box. The smile faltered quickly when she got a good look at it. The leather was cracked, the seams were coming undone. Samantha slipped her hand into it and punched the center, and bits crackled off into dust. She looked up at her brother, her eyes wide. It had been a prized possession, kept in tip-top shape.

"I'm sorry, Samantha." Mulder said quietly. "It sat for a long time in the basement..."

Samantha pulled the glove off without a word and dropped it back into the box. Most of her other scavenging went much the same way. Most of her clothes were moth-eaten, and everything had a worn antique look to it.

Mulder watched her go through the boxes, and it broke his heart to watch her excitement turn to confusion and unhappiness. Just when he thought the trip was going to be a complete bust, Samantha let out a loud happy squeal.

"ARTHUR!" she cried, diving into a box, and returning with her arms wrapped tightly around a large brown lump.

Mulder smiled when he recognized who Arthur was. Samantha had received the teddy bear the Christmas she was two. His blue bow tie had long since been half unraveled.

Samantha ran over and threw her arms around her brother, Arthur still clutched tightly in one hand. "Thank you, Fox! Thank you for not getting rid of him!"

"Of course I didn't rid of old Artie; he's practically family." Mulder answered, thankful that Samantha didn't ask about Arthur's nickname. After Samantha had disappeared, Mulder had taken the teddy bear into his own room. It had even gone to college with him, before being returned to Samantha's belongings after he returned home. He had bestowed the nickname of 'Artie' on the bear during that time.

Mulder leaned down and began packing the boxes up. "You want to take anything else, Samantha?" he asked her, and she shook her head, holding Arthur as tightly as she could, a rapturous expression on her face.

* * *

Samantha walked around the small apartment, Arthur held tightly in the crook of one arm. She smiled when she saw the fish, and she was enamored with Mulder's large television. She had never imagined a TV could be so big. She jumped up and down when he showed her the John Wayne Collection he'd had Scully pick up and explained that she could watch any John Wanye movie she wanted whenever she wanted.

Mulder grinned at her reaction. He and Samantha had fought a lot as kids, but no more than most siblings did. He was experiencing the feeling of being the hotshot older brother who did and knew the coolest things again. He had dreamed of having one more chance with Samantha, one more day to spend time with her, to make her smile, to see her be happy. "You want to watch one now?" he asked, expecting the same excited reaction.

Samantha paused. "Can I watch it tomorrow?" she asked. "I'm kind of tired now."

"Yeah, of course. You can watch it whenever you want." Mulder told her. "You feeling OK?"

Samantha nodded. "Yeah, I'm okay. Just tired."

Mulder gave her one of his t-shirts to wear for bed until they went out to get clothes the next day. It hung loose on her skinny frame, hanging down below her knees. Mulder hesitated, than kissed the top of her head, the way their Father had done almost every night so many years ago. "If you need anything just call me, I'll be right on the couch Mulder promised.

Samantha smiled at him. "Thanks, Fox. Goodnight." As soon as the bedroom door closed, Samantha's smile fell away. She sat down on the bad, Arthur in her lap, and looked around the bedroom. Everything felt so unfamiliar and strange. She considered fleeing the unfamiliar loneliness of the bedroom for the living room, where she could hear the TV playing softly, but decided to stick it out anyway. She laid down on the cold sheets, sheets that hadn't been used in more than a month because Mulder barely ever slept in his bedroom, and held the Teddy Bear tight.

* * *

It took Mulder longer to fall asleep that night than normal, because he kept getting up to check on his sister, to make sure she was still there. When he did finally drift off to sleep, the old dream came to plague him. He and Samantha, 12 and 8, playing Stratego. The argument over the television, the bright light filling the room…

Mulder twisted in his sleep, tears staining his face. "Sam… Samantha! Samantha!" he called out. Normally his cries went unheard in an empty apartment, but tonight there was someone to hear.

Samantha walked out of the bedroom, rubbing her eyes and yawning. "Fox? Did you call me?" she asked, not realizing he was asleep. When she saw he was sleeping she shook his arm. "Fox. Fox! Wake up!"

Normally in the dream, Samantha's voice faded away to nothing. But this time it got stronger, louder. And in the dream his paralysis broke, and instead of watching Samantha disappear, he ran to her and grabbed her, pulling her back into the window, into his arms…

"FOX!" Samantha yelled, and Mulder jumped awake. He saw Samantha standing next to him, eyes wide, and pulled the startled little girl into his arms. He hugged her tight, like she was going to float away if he didn't.

Samantha felt his wet cheek against her. She hugged him back once she got over the initial shock. It was the first time he had really hugged her since she'd come back. Up until than he'd been treating her like a porcelain doll that might break. When he finally released her she sat on the couch next to him, looking slightly concerned.

"I'm sorry, Samantha." Mulder said, wiping his eyes. "I'm sorry, I, had a nightmare, I didn't mean to wake you up."

"I know, Butt-munch." Samantha replied, amicably enough, patting his back lightly. "Are you okay now?"

Mulder smiled at her. "Yeah. I really think I am."


	2. Chapter 2

"Fox!" Mulder's breath caught and he sat up quickly, feeling mildly disoriented. He leaned forward, his head in his hands, breathing quickly.

"Fox!" the insistent voice came again. Now he could tell it was coming from somewhere near the kitchen. He looked up as he heard small feet stomping towards the living room.

"Fox, you don't have anything for breakfast." his sister informed him, a no-nonsense look on her face that reminded him of their Mother so much that he almost laughed at her. "And your milk expired three weeks ago." Samantha thrust the foul-smelling carton into his hands, scales of old dried milk falling from it like snowflakes onto the carpet.

Mulder eyed her wordlessly, taking in the bossy little girl still dressed in an over-sized t-shirt. Though younger, she'd always tried to Mother him, scolding him when he went against their parents orders or made a mess. Slowly he smiled. "Sorry about that, boss. I'll pick some more up while we're out today. In the meantime, go get dressed. I'll call Scully, and we'll go to IHOP for breakfast before we go shopping. Sound good?"

Samantha grinned. "Yeah." She started towards the bedroom, than paused. "Fox, why do you call her 'Scully' instead of her name?"

"Her name is Scully, it's just her last name. A lot of Agents call each other by their last name. So do police officers and Security guards." he answered, folding the blanket he had slept with and putting it over the back of the couch. Normally he didn't bother, but he had a feeling his sister would chide him for being messy if he didn't. Though she was a tom-boy, Samantha had also always been very neat and fastidious.

"I know that." Samantha answered in a very 'duh' voice. "But how many still do that when they're dating?"

Mulder's face turned pink and he almost dropped the carton of old milk. "Scully and I aren't dating." he said to the closed bedroom door, going to throw the milk into the kitchen garbage.

The bedroom door opened a crack, just enough for Samantha to stick her head out. "You're not?" she asked, looking confused.

"No, we're not. We're just partners, at work, and friends." her brother told her firmly.

"Oh." Samantha answered, looking disappointed for a moment. "Well, what are you waiting for? Ask her out, Fox." The bedroom door snicked shut again and Mulder stared after it incredulously.

"And, a lot of people still use each others last names, even after they get married." he added uncertainly, making his way to the bathroom.

"So get married than!" Mulder heard faintly as he closed the bathroom door. He considered responding, than thought better of it.

"I think I might be in trouble." he muttered to himself.

* * *

Mulder, Samantha, and Scully sat at a corner table in the local IHOP. Scully had ordered a vegetable and egg-white omelet with light cheese and a fruit salad, and Mulder had two over-easy eggs, white toast, and bacon with a side of home-fries. Samantha, on the other hand, was happily tearing through a Western omelet with a side of toast, hash browns, sausage, and bacon; as well as a stack of three pancakes well-drowned in butter and real maple syrup.

Scully watched the child eat and almost felt a twinge of jealousy as she took a bite of her decidedly rather bland omelet. She didn't know where the kid put it; it had to be falling out of a hole in her leg or something.

"Where are we going shopping?" Samantha asked, barely intelligible through a mouthful of pancake and sausage, her legs drumming absently against the seat and making the booth vibrate, probably much to the chagrin of the people sitting behind them.

Mulder and Scully exchanged a look, her questioning and his imploring. He didn't know anything about taking a little girl shopping, nor what things they would want or need. Seeing that Mulder wasn't going to answer, Scully offered a suggestion.

"How about the Mall?" she proposed. "It'll have the biggest clothes selection, plus you can look at furniture there too, maybe some toys..." Samantha grinned at the mention of toys. "But not too many toys." Scully added. "If you get too many, Santa won't have anything to bring you for Christmas in a few weeks." Scully knew from talking to Mulder that their family had celebrated both Christmas and Hanukah growing up because their Mother had been Protestant but their Father had been Jewish.

A worry line creased Samantha's forehead and she looked over at her brother. "Fox, will Santa still come for me, even though I'm not _really_ a kid anymore?"

Mulder was caught off guard, both by the question and the implication. He hadn't been thinking of Christmas at all, even though it was only a month away. Scully was the only one he had bought for in years, and he hadn't decorated for the holidays in far longer than that. He recovered quickly by pretending to choke on his food and need a sip of water. "Yeah, of course Santa's still coming. He doesn't care how old you are. Hell, er, heck, Santa still brings _me_ presents every year." he promised, mentally reminding himself to watch his mouth.

Samantha seemed to relax a little. "Really?" she asked, her voice skeptical.

"Definitely, I still get gifts from Santa too." Scully added, deciding to help her partner out. She was glad to see Samantha having a child's worry, and she also felt that the little girl deserved to have something innocent to believe in, for at least another year or so.

Scully's addition seemed to reassure Samantha completely, and she went back to her food. A few moments later she looked back up at her brother. "Fox, we're still gonna celebrate Hanukah too, right?"

"Yeah, sure. Of course." he answered with a slightly rigid smile, mentally adding a menorah to the Christmas Tree, Stockings, and other multitude of things he was going to have to buy. Scully caught his eye and winked when Samantha wasn't looking. He felt a grateful smile spread across his face, and looking over at his sister he decided he was giving her the most amazing holiday season she'd ever had, even if he had to empty his entire bank account to do it.

* * *

At the mall, Samantha could barely contain her excitement. She'd never been to such a big shopping center. It was three stories high, and packed with every type of store known to man. Samantha also couldn't believe the technology, and her constant squealing at every mundane appliance she came across earned them plenty of strange looks from people passing by.

Mulder gave Scully a desperate look, holding his hands out in front of him, palms up. "Help me, I don't know how to shop for girls." he pleaded. "I don't know how many shirts she needs, or pants, or, or, whatever."

Scully had to suppress her laughter. "Mulder; relax. It isn't brain surgery. Get her a few shirts, a couple pairs of jeans, a couple shirts, some pajamas, and a dress or two for now. You can add more over time, and you can get her some clothes for Christmas and Hanukah, and that's in a few weeks." The blank look he gave her suggested that what she had said meant little to nothing to him. "Never mind; just follow us, and I'll tell you what to buy."

By the time they headed to the food court for lunch, Mulder was pretty sure his credit card was melting. He didn't understand how an eight year old could develop such refined tastes. He didn't remember Samantha being so fussy about her clothes before, but than again he had never gone shopping with her and their Mother. He had worn whatever his Mother had bought for him in exchange for not spending a Saturday at a clothing store trying things on.

Scully had insisted on buying a few of the outfits and assorted accessories that Samantha had picked out despite Mulder's protests, on the basis of the shopping trip being her idea. Now she was treating them to lunch at the coffee shop in the mall since Mulder had treated for breakfast. Looking at her as she paid for their sandwiches and drinks, Mulder decided he was really going to have to get her something nice for Christmas this year. Gazing at her, his conversation with Samantha this morning came drifting back to him and his cheeks began to burn.

Almost on cue, he felt an elbow jab into his ribs. He looked down at his sister guiltily, feeling much as he had when his Mother would catch him trying to sneak cookies as a child. Samantha smirked at him knowingly, but thankfully didn't say anything as Scully walked back over to them.

"Thank you for lunch, Dana." Samantha said, trying to scramble her way up a tall stool. After the third attempt, Mulder picked her up and sat her on the stool. Privately, he was beaming at her manners, which had so far been impeccable. He was surprised to find that there was one way in which his parents had apparently succeeded in raising their children. Thinking about that, and looking at Samantha, he realized that his parents had been fairly decent at raising them in general, until Samantha had vanished. He wondered if it had been sprung on them at the last minute, that one of their children had to be given up. He liked to think that it had been, and that if they had been given the time they would have just taken him and Samantha and run.

"You are very welcome, Samantha." Scully told the little girl as she tucked into her caprese sandwich. She noticed Mulder spacing out and attempted to bring him back to the conversation. "Mulder, you do know how to cook, don't you?"

"I know how to cook." he answered defensively. Samantha and Scully both gave him suspicious looks.

"I think she means more than heating up Spaghetti-Os or boiling hot dogs, Fox." Samantha informed him dryly, and Scully snorted into her plate.

"Hey, I might not be able to cook like-" he paused, having been ready to say Mom. He didn't really want to bring up their parents if Samantha wasn't thinking about them, so amended his statement. "-a, uh, chef, but I can cook. I can throw crock pot meals together, and casseroles, spaghetti..."

Samantha didn't miss a beat. "Oh, that's good. Just make sure the ingredients aren't three weeks too old before you use them."

Mulder gave his sister a rather dumbfounded look, but Samantha hadn't even bothered to look at him for his reaction. When he looked at Scully, she couldn't help the large smile spreading across her face or keep from giggling. Mulder shook his head, than reached out to ruffle Samantha's hair. "You're a little imp, you know that?"

Samantha ducked away from his hand, giggling. "Fox!"

After putting all of their purchases in the trunk of Mulder's car, the three went back inside to let Samantha play in the arcade for a little while. Pong had come out in 1972, but Samantha had never played, nor even seen, a video game of any type. Fox had played early games with college friends in arcades, but had never been particularly interested. Samantha, however, took to them like a fish to water. After showing her how to play, Mulder and Scully sat down on a bench and watched her.

"Maybe I should stop and pick up a PlayStation or Dreamcast or something for her." Mulder suggested, watching Samantha's intense concentration.

Scully laughed at him. "Mulder, you're going to spoil her rotten. You already got her three Lego sets, barbies, a bunch of books, crayons, markers, colored pencils, coloring books and sketch books, paint… you got her a Furby, those neodymium magnets, CDs, a bunch of movies. You got her two science experiment kits and a chemistry set. You can't get her everything all at once." Though her tone was rebuking, there was a gentleness to it.

Mulder glanced at her sideways for a split second before locking nervous eyes on Samantha again. "I know, but I want to."

Scully laughed and briefly rested her head against his shoulder for just a second or two. He could smell the sweet scent of her conditioner when she did so and felt his heart beat quicken. She turned to him, smiling. "I know you do, and I don't blame you. But don't do it. It'll ruin her holidays if you get her all the good stuff now. Santa has to bring the good stuff."

Mulder smirked at the mention of Santa. He'd never entertained the idea of playing the jolly old man himself. "Yeah… Santa. Right."

"Mulder… You have to play along for her. At least until she's 10. At the _very_ least." Scully told him. "Besides, it's fun playing Santa. Missy and I had a lot of fun playing along for the two or three years Charlie believed after we found out."

Samantha running over to her brother for more money for the games brought the holiday conversation to a quick end. After she ran back into the arcade the duo fell into a comfortable silence for several minutes. Scully eventually broke it with a question.

"When are you planning on enrolling her in school? And where?"

Mulder gave her a pained, sheepish glance. "I'm not sure yet." he admitted. "I was thinking I might home-school her, at least for awhile. She already has so much to get used to..."

Scully's gaze was sympathetic, but her argument was significantly less so. "Mulder, that's exactly why she should be going to school. She needs a sense of normalcy, and to be around other kids her age. She needs to make new friends, and get used to a new life."

Mulder shrugged the argument off. "Well, I can't enroll her in anything just yet, anyway. I need the paperwork. They're going to issue her a new birth certificate with her year of birth being 1992 instead of 1965, and a new SSI number. I'll worry about it after the holidays."

"What are you going to do about work?" Scully asked, more softly now. It had occurred to her that Mulder had started his work on the X-Files, and been so dedicated for so long, because he was trying to find Samantha. Was there any reason to continue, now that he had found what he was looking for?

Mulder smiled, but there was little amusement in the expression. "I have plenty of vacation time owed to me. Considering the circumstances, I don't think Skinner will have a problem with me taking a few weeks off from work."

"You're going to come back to the X-Files?" Scully asked, feeling a bit surprised yet not surprised at all at the same time.

Mulder glanced at her. "I won't say I didn't think about quitting; I almost wrote my letter of resignation last night. But I can't. You didn't quit on me when I needed you, and I'm not going to quit on you, either. We still need to know who it was that arranged your abduction and performed experiments on you, and we need to stop them from harming anyone else, or you, again. Plus, I still don't know what happened to my sister. I don't know who took her, what they did to her… and I don't know if they're going to want her back."

Looking at the little girl play as Mulder spoke, Scully felt the hairs on the back of her neck bristle and she nodded. It was true that they were still no closer now to knowing who had taken Samantha than when the X-File on her abduction was originally opened. It could have been the government, it could have been aliens, it could have been a secret group within the government who was working with the aliens. It could have been someone else entirely, for all they really knew about it. And without knowing, there was no way to keep it from happening again.

* * *

Mulder invited Scully to come over for dinner, but she declined, saying she had promised to have dinner with her Mother. So he dropped her off at home, than headed to the supermarket with Samantha. Scully had given him a list of things he needed to get for the little girl, including what toothpaste, shampoo, and conditioner she'd need. They picked up those necessities first, and now Samantha was flitting around the store, picking out her favorite foods.

"Fox, can we get bananas?" Samantha asked, putting a bunch of them in the cart.

"Yeah, go for it." he answered. They were healthy, anyway. At least she wasn't putting all candy, chips, and soda in the cart. Mulder eyed the rest of the fresh produce section a bit anxiously. Despite what he had told Samantha and Scully at the mall, cooking was not his strong suit. His decades of bachelorhood had been spent eating frozen food and take-out far too often. "So, uh, what did you want for dinner tonight, Samantha?" he asked, hoping he could talk her into pizza or Chinese food or something, at least for the night.

"Meatloaf, green beans, and _real_ mashed potatoes." Samantha responded instantly, dashing her brother's hopes of getting away without cooking for another night. "I hate the boxed ones."

Mulder winced at the request, knowing there was no way it was going to go down well. It was Samantha's favorite meal, but he had no idea how to make their Mother's meatloaf. It had been a recipe Teena Mulder had been very proud of, but one she had never made again after Samantha's disappearance. She had tried once or twice, but it was too painful for all of them. The last time they'd had it had been Samantha's eighth birthday, only days before she disappeared.

"Samantha… I can make meatloaf, but I don't know how to make the meatloaf your talking about." he told her diplomatically, trying to avoid directly mentioning their Mother.

Samantha smiled at him, an expression so full of understanding it was painful to him. "It's okay, Fox. I helped Mommy make it a couple of times, I can show you."

He almost asked her how she could remember it after almost thirty years, but than stopped himself. It wasn't thirty years to her. To her, she had helped her Mother make the meal less than a week ago. Combined with her use of the honorific 'Mommy', something she had not done yet, Mulder felt himself trying to swallow a lump in his throat. "Okay, Samantha. Just tell me what we need for it and we'll make it."

Samantha immediately began rattling off the list of ingredients to him, and Mulder followed her around with the cart, mostly lost in thought. It occurred to him again, more strongly now, how very strange it must be for her, to go from her normal life and seemingly just an instant later find out that your parents have died, your brother is middle-aged, and the world you knew, everything and everyone, was long gone.

He watched her as she shopped, nodding or distractedly giving one or two word answers of agreement when she asked for something. He didn't understand how she was taking it so well. Everything he knew about psychology went against it. She should be angry and churlish, frustrated at least. He would expect any child in that type of situation to regress, to throw tantrums, to be excessively fearful and antisocial. So far, she wasn't showing any of that. If anything, she was more pleasant-tempered than he remembered. Mulling over the quandary, he didn't hear her question, and was jerked out of his reverie by her waving a box of fruit snacks in front of his face.

"Fah-ox! Can I get these, pleeaassseee?" Samantha asked, standing on tippy-toe and leaning forward so she could wave the box in his line of sight.

Mulder smiled at her antics, even though he knew he should probably be scolding her for them. "Sure, Samantha. But we better hurry up, or we're going to end up having dinner at midnight."

"Thank you, Fox!" Samantha said, dropping the box into the cart and spinning away. "We still have to get milk before we go. And we need cream and butter and sour cream for the mashed potatoes."

Mulder followed along behind her with the cart. Still thinking about her strange reaction to her life circumstance, he wondered if a person's reaction to something so impossible was even reasonably possible to gauge. He decided that Samantha was either an extremely resilient person, or that her joviality would wear thin over the next several weeks and let her inner turmoil show through.

* * *

True to her word, Samantha remembered how to make the meatloaf. She instructed her brother with mincing onion, fresh garlic, and mushrooms. She wanted to help mix it in with the meat, but Mulder didn't want her touching the raw meat, just in case she touched her face with unwashed hands. He let her pour the Worcestershire Sauce in and add the spices instead. It was almost 7:30 by the time they sat down to dinner. Samantha set the table, arranging the forks and knives on folded napkins next to their plates carefully.

"It's perfect, Fox!" Samantha said after taking her first bite, smacking her lips happily to show her appreciation.

Mulder had to agree that it tasted exactly the way he remembered their Mother's meatloaf tasting. It was a bite of nostalgia for him, bringing back long-gone memories. "Yeah, thanks to you knowing the recipe it is." he told her, winking. She giggled at him, and blushed slightly, pleased with the compliment.

"Can we watch Willie Wonka tonight?" Samantha asked, looking up from her food. Mulder was relatively certain that the puppy dog eyes she gave him with the question were mostly unintentional, but nonetheless effective. He had never particularly liked the movie, not since their parents had taken them to see it in the theater when they were 10 and 6, but it had immediately been one of Samantha's favorites. Consequently, he had bought the DVD for her at the mall today.

"Yeah, sure, if you want to." he said, trying to sound enthusiastic but failing miserably. "You don't want to watch John Wayne?" Westerns had never been his favorite either, he preferred creature features and 50's sci-fi, but a John Wayne movie beat Willie Wonka at least.

Samantha shook her head. "Nope. I like John Wayne, but I wanna watch Willie Wonka more. It's my favorite!"

Mulder sighed inwardly to himself. It was going to be a long night. "Whatever you want, Kid. When you get done with your dinner go get washed up and ready for bed, than we'll watch your movie. And if you want, I'll make us some popcorn." He decided that the look of adoration on Samantha's face would have made sitting through the movie a thousand times in a row more than worthwhile.

Mulder cleaned up the dishes and wrapped up the leftovers. Hearing the water running in the shower, he tried to remember if Samantha had gotten baths or showers, and if his Mom had let her take them alone. Nervous, he picked up the house phone.

"Scully, it's me." he said, watching the closed bathroom door anxiously. "Yeah, everything's fine, but I was just wondering; do eight year olds get showers or baths?"

On the other end of the phone Scully breathed a sigh of relief, having excused herself from the dinner table and stepped into the hallway when the phone rang. She'd been afraid that something had gone wrong with Samantha somehow, and hadn't wanted to discuss it in front of her brother Bill and his wife Tara, nor their two small children, Matthew and Mary. She was at her Mother's visiting with them while they were in from California because they weren't sure if they would be able to get back again for Christmas. "It depends on the child, Mulder. I would suggest letting her decide to get whichever she's more comfortable with."

Mulder nodded, to himself because no one else was there to see the movement. "Right. That sounds good. And, I'm not, like, supposed to be in the room or making her keep the door open or anything, right? She's old enough I don't have to do that?" The tone of his voice was desperately pleading.

Scully smiled, and couldn't help a slight laugh. "I think she'll be fine, Mulder. As long as you don't hear any crashing sounds, I really wouldn't worry. Just yell in to her if you get nervous. Uh huh. Goodnight, Mulder." she hung up the phone and went back into the dinning room, apologizing. She could tell from the look on her brother's face that he'd been trying to hear as much of the conversation as possible.

"Mulder, huh? Still that same guy you've been chasing after for the last seven years now, right?" Bill asked her, bouncing his 9 month old daughter on his lap. "Chasing after little green men with, I mean."

Dana smiled mirthlessly at her brother, knowing what passed for a Bill Jr. witticism when she heard one. It was no secret that Bill thought she was desperately in love with Mulder and made a fool of herself on a regular basis trying to win his affections. "I still have the same partner at the Bureau." she answered, ignoring his jibe.

Bill nodded. "I heard you on the phone; what I want to know is who in their right mind is letting that man watch a child? I feel like I should be calling Child Protective Services." Bill smiled at his sister to try and take the edge off the comment, but even he could see that he was pushing her buttons.

"I'm really not at liberty to discuss that with you, Bill." Scully replied, her voice icy and her smile fake. "He's doing fine, he just needs to get used to having a child around." And with that she promptly changed the topic before Bill forced her to strangle him in front of their family.

Samantha's shower, or at least what her brother assumed was a shower due to the length of time the water was running, went by without a hitch, except for Mulder nervously hovering outside the bathroom door and asking if everything was alright three times.

By the time Samantha came out of the bedroom, wearing new lilac-colored satin pajamas and pink bunny slippers, Mulder had a bowl of popcorn made and the movie in the DVD player ready to go. She plopped down beside him on the couch and stole the popcorn.

As soon as the movie started Samantha was enamored. "Wow, Fox, look at it!" she cried. "It's like you can walk right into it!" Samantha walked over to the television and stuck her hand out, hesitantly tracing her fingers over it and yanking them back quickly, as though she really expected to fall into it. She turned back to her brother with a big smile.

Mulder returned Samantha's excited smile. "Yeah, TV graphics have really come a long way since the 70's." _Wait'll she sees a computer and the internet._ He thought to himself.

The novelty of the movie didn't wear off, but eventually Samantha sat back down on the couch next to her brother. Before the end of the movie she was sound asleep, her head resting on her brother's leg.

Mulder turned the television off, than picked his sister up off the couch to carry her into the bedroom instead of waking her up. Samantha wrapped her arms around his neck in her sleep. He tucked her into the bed and tucked Arthur under her arm. He paused for a moment, watching her, than kissed her forehead gently. "Goodnight, Samantha." he whispered. "I love you."

As he turned to walk out of the room he heard his sister stir. "Fox?" she asked sleepily.

Mulder turned around in the doorway. "Yeah, Samantha?"

"Can I have a puppy?" the small voice asks.

Mulder smiled. Samantha had always loved animals, had been pestering their parents for a puppy or a kitten as soon as she could talk. Their Mother would never have allowed an animal in her home, however. "I'm sorry, Samantha. They don't allow dogs in my building here."

"Oh." Her voice was disappointed, and Mulder found himself wondering how hard it would be to move to a different apartment, maybe even a house. "Can I have a kitten?" she asked hopefully, clearly more awake now.

Mulder smiled. "We'll see. Maybe you should ask Santa what he thinks." He shut the door gently and walked back into the living room. Laying down on the couch, Mulder drifted off to sleep with a smile of contentment on his face for the first time in years.


	3. Chapter 3

Sunday, December 24th, 2000, 5:30 PM

Margaret Scully opened the front door to reveal a tall man standing behind a little girl, his hand on her shoulder. There was a certain resemblance between them, and both of them looked exceptionally nervous. "Fox, Merry Christmas! I'm so happy you decided to come over! Dana will be happy to see you both, she's been talking about you all night." she informed the man with something of a knowing smile. She bent down to greet the little girl before Fox could answer her. "And you must be Samantha! It's very nice to finally meet you, I've heard a lot about you."

Samantha smiled at her hesitantly, but clearly pleased. "Hello, Mrs. Scully. Merry Christmas."

Maggie led them both into the house, towards where the other guests were. Both of her sons had come for the holidays this year with their families, and there were some neighbors and family friends over as well.

Mulder felt nervous and uncomfortable, and it was written all over his face no matter how hard he tried to hide it. It had been decades since he had done the 'family thing' for the holidays. Usually he stayed home and drank too much beer or whiskey, or both, and fell asleep as early as he could. Or he found a way to work and forget that it was a holiday at all. The only decent holidays he'd had since Samantha had disappeared had been the ones he had talked Scully into working with him, actually. It had been her idea for him to bring Samantha over to her Mother's this year. She had invited Mulder himself every year that she'd known him, but he had always declined. This year, she hadn't taken no for an answer, on the principle that it would be good for Samantha to have a holiday atmosphere with other people, and especially other kids. Unable to argue with that, he had agreed to come over for the open house that Margaret hosted every year on the 24th.

Sensing her brother's discomfort, Samantha held his hand tightly as they walked through the house. She was excited to see Dana, and by the sounds and smells and colors and cheer associated with any good holiday party, but she also wasn't used to it. When their parents had thrown parties Samantha and Fox had known better than to come downstairs. It had almost exclusively been an early dinner and early bedtime for them when their parents had people over.

"Danny, can you take Fox and Samantha's coats up to the bedroom for me, please?" Maggie asked a honey-haired teenage boy. He looked quite a bit like Taylor Hanson, but his shaggy hair was significantly shorter. Before the kid ran off she stopped him. "This is my son Charlie's oldest, Danny. He just turned 13 in August, a teenager now, can you believe it?" Maggie Scully kissed his cheek. The kid greeted Mulder and Samantha with a polite smile, though he was clearly embarrassed by his grandmother's doting.

Samantha took off the dark green pea coat with gold buttons that her brother had bought her to wear for the holidays, revealing her holiday dress underneath. Maggie immediately made a fuss over it as Danny made his escape.

"Look at that dress, you look so pretty!" Maggie told her with a large cheery smile. It was a bright red dress, made from sweatshirt material. The dress sported a Christmas scene displaying a tree and various gifts and boxes, including a rocking horse and nutcracker, and the sleeves and bottom hem were edged with white whispy faux fur. White stockings, black buckled Mary Janes, and a jolly green and red ribboned hair barrette, including tiny golden bells, completed the look. "Did your brother do your hair?" Maggie asked her.

Samantha nodded, making the bells on her hair piece jingle merrily, a large smile spreading over her face. "Dana taught him how." Samantha's long dark hair had Shirley Temple Ringlets in it, and was half pulled up with the barrette in a sort of Victorian style, almost Charles Dickens-esque.

Before Maggie could say anything else Dana wandered into the room. "Hey! You actually came over!" She gave Mulder a quick kiss on his cheek in greeting, closer to his ear than his mouth but still enough to startle him. She stepped away quickly, as if surprised by the action herself, and immediately moved to greet Samantha. "Hi Sweetie, Merry Christmas!" She gave the girl a tight one armed hug around the shoulders, pulling her against her side.

Samantha wrapped her arms around Scully's waist, grinning up at her, idolization shinning in her eyes. "Merry Christmas, Dana."

"You look so pretty! Did you pick your dress out?" she asked Samantha while her Mother was busy fussing over Mulder and trying to give him a drink and some hors d'oeuvres.

Samantha shook her head. "Nope. Fox picked it out. He did my hair, too, just like you showed him!"

"It looks beautiful! We're really getting your brother to get good with the girl stuff, huh?" Scully asked her, steering her into another room still hanging off her waist.

Samantha nodded and giggled. "Yeah. We have to teach him to do make-up, too."

Scully laughed at that. "Maybe we'll work on nail polish next. How does that sound? I think he would look absolutely _dashing_ with bright green nails."

Samantha was about to agree when they came to a stop in front of the entrance to the den. Any sound died from her lips when she surveyed the room of children watching a cartoon, apparently about lions. She looked up at Scully questioningly.

Scully smiled at her. "Samantha, I want you to meet my nieces and nephews." she told her. "That one right there is Ricky." Scully pointed to Charlie's youngest child, Patrick, a boy who was three, or maybe a tiny four, with a mop of red curls and a face spotted with freckles. "And over there is is Matthew." she pointed to Bill's son, a boy who was slightly shorter than the other, but stockier, with clear skin and blonde hair. He looked like a cherub out of a painting. Scully looked around. "Mary-Margaret is the baby, but she's upstairs taking a nap. And where is…-" As Scully trailed off her niece popped up behind her. "Hi, Aunt Dana. Is that Sammy?"

Samantha turned to face a girl her age, but about half a head shorter. She had red hair like the first little boy, but it was straight and much darker, parted straight down the middle with no bangs and ended at the tops of her shoulders. She had no freckles. The resemblance to a young Jena Malone was absolutely uncanny. She was the first child her own age, or at all, actually, that Samantha had been near in almost a month. She smiled at her shyly.

"There you are! Yes, this is Sammy." Scully looked down at Samantha. "This is my niece, Ashleigh. She just turned nine a few weeks ago, and she has been looking forward to having someone who's not a baby or a teenager to play with." Scully looked up at her niece. "Right, Ash?"

The red-headed little girl rolled her eyes. "Of course, Aunt Dana. But you don't have to try so hard." Ashleigh took Samantha's hand. "Come on; I'll show you what my Grandma has that we can play with."

Samantha hung back, not following at first. Her eyes were trained on Scully. "Dana?" she asked softly. "Dana, do I have to stay in here all night?" She remembered her parents parties very well, where she had just been an annoyance for the night, something for them to need to be rid of.

Scully smiled at her. "No, you don't have to stay in here at all if you don't want to. I only brought you in here to meet Ashleigh. The other kids are just hanging out in here because that's where all the toys are. You can go wherever you want. Did you want something to eat before you go play?"

Samantha shook her head hesitantly. Ashleigh gave her hand a tug. "Come on; I want to show you this new game Grandma got us."

Scully put her hands on Samantha's shoulders. "I'll tell you what; you go play with Ashleigh, and when you get bored you come and find me or your brother. I promise, you don't have to stay in the den, okay?"

Samantha offered a small smile and nodded, finally letting Ashleigh lead her away into the room.

Scully rejoined the rest of the party, finally finding Mulder standing with a group of men including a few neighbors and her brother Bill. He was standing a bit stiffly, holding a plate of food and a red plastic cup full of root beer. Her Mother stopped her before she could make her way over to them.

"He's a very sweet man, Dana. Very polite, and well-mannered." Maggie said, giving her daughter a knowing look. "And certainly not bad on the eyes, either."

Scully blushed. "Mom! He's a friend, a very dear friend. That usually happens with someone you risk your life for regularly, and they risk their life for you. There is _nothing_ else going on between us."

Maggie Scully raised her eyebrows. "Oh? I didn't know it was standard to greet one's law enforcement partner with a kiss, cheek or not." Her look suggested that if there truly was nothing else going on between them that Dana should do something about that, and soon.

Scully's cheeks flushed almost as red as her hair. She tried to stammer something out, but found her throat clicking unintelligibly instead. Her Mother laughed at her.

"Don't be so defensive, Dana. You haven't been able to hide your crushes from me since you were seven years old. If it makes you feel any better, he's clearly interested in you, too. And that little girl couldn't adore you anymore if you were Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy rolled into one."

Scully started to protest again than paused. "He does?" she asked her Mother uncertainly. Before Maggie could respond, Mulder popped up behind Scully.

He offered Maggie a winning smile. "This food is amazing. It must have taken you a week to make all of it."

Maggie returned the smile. "Thank you very much, Fox! It probably would have if Tara and Eileen hadn't been here to help me cook" Maggie gave her daughter a slightly exasperated look. "This one here was too busy with work."

Mulder grinned sheepishly, looking from Scully to her Mother. "Ah, that might have been my fault. I've been out of work since I got custody of Samantha."

Maggie Scully laughed. "Oh, don't let her use that as an excuse! She's always busy around the holidays." She winked at her daughter and Mulder and made her way into the living room to offer drinks and food to the rest of the guests.

Mulder looked at Scully, suddenly feeling mildly uncomfortable. "It's nice, really, the party. I don't know why I never took you up on the offer before."

Scully felt her face cracking into an expression of mildly exasperated amusement. "Probably because up until this year you not only hated the idea of being stuck in a house with a bunch of strangers, but you hated the holiday season itself and everything it represents."

Mulder found himself wondering what it would feel like to kiss her. He already knew what it felt like to plunge his hands through her coppery hair, and they had shared a brief New Years kiss the previous year, but looking at her now… There was a semi-amused, self satisfied little half smirk on her face. The smile lit up her entire visage, and made her blue eyes shine. Her make-up was done in a light, casual way that was very different than when she worked. Her hair had a more wild appearance, not carefully business controlled, and she wore a red Santa hat with her name across the front in multi-colored glitter. Instead of the small studs she wore in her ears at work there were dangling earrings in her ears that flashed with bright red and green LED lights. The soft green sweater she wore revealed a tasteful slight of cleavage, and her black slacks were just tight enough to reveal an intriguing outline of her figure as she moved. Almost against his will he began to lean towards her.

Dana was caught in the same moment from her own perspective. Something about the lighting, dim and multicolored and magical, seemed to outline and accentuate every handsome feature of his face. Flickering Christmas lights danced in his hazel eyes. His hair had grown in just a bit and hung over his forehead, almost falling into those beautiful hazel eyes. Though she would never admit it, she had been admiring the way his derriere looked in the jeans she wasn't used to seeing him in. She leaned towards him as he moved towards her, just slightly-

"Not interrupting, am I?" Bill Scully Jr. asked, stepping into the room. His smirk suggested that he thought he was indeed interrupting something. Both Mulder and Scully jumped and looked away from each other.

"No, uh, of course not. You're not interrupting anything, we were, uh, just talking." Dana answered her brother rather breathlessly, blushing and refusing to look at him as well. She suddenly felt like she was a teenager again, recalling Bill opening the front door at an inopportune moment as she returned from her first date when she was fifteen.

"Good. Chuck sent me to find you, we're setting up the poker game, playing for quarters. You want in?" he asked, turning to look at Mulder. "It's a family tradition, we play cards every Christmas Eve."

Mulder smiled at him politely. "No thanks, I think I'll pass. I've never had much luck with gambling."

Bill shrugged. "Suit yourself. If you change your mind, we'll be in the dinning room."

An hour later found Dana sighing at yet another crap hand. Bill and Charlie tended to win the card games more often than not, but she didn't usually lose quite so badly. She was down $20 already, and hadn't won a single hand yet. Bill was up by $10, and Charlie was down by about $30. Danny, however, seemed to be having a streak of winner's luck, and was up by $50. It was the first year he had been allowed to join in the game on his own with his own hand of cards. It was a right of passage their Father had begun with them. He had played cards every Christmas Eve for as far back as the Scully children could remember. Anyone could play who was over the house, but they had to be at least 13. Each of the Scully Children had looked forward to their 13th Christmas for years, and each had fond memories of it. Charlie had been keen to continue the tradition, especially now that their Father had passed away. Dana was about ready to forfeit for the evening when Samantha and Ashleigh made their way into the dinning room.

Ashleigh made her way over to Charlie and put her head on his shoulder, looking at his cards. "Can I play with you, Daddy?" she asked.

"Sure, kiddo, but I'm not splitting the pot unless you put money in." Charlie told his daughter, his eyes dancing playfully, neglecting to mention he was down money, not up currently. His daughter rolled her eyes at him as she climbed up to sit on his lap.

Dana turned to Samantha and smiled. The little girl was hovering nervously behind her chair. "Hey Sweetie, whatcha up to?"

Samantha shrugged, smiling slightly. "Ricky and Matt fell asleep, and we got bored. What are you playing?"

Dana motioned for her to come closer. "We're playing Poker. Have you ever played cards?"

Samantha shook her head. "Not _real_ cards. Just Go Fish and War."

Dana pulled the girl up onto her lap. It looked a bit awkward, because Dana was short and Samantha was very tall, making them very nearly the same height, but it wasn't uncomfortable. Though she was tall, Samantha was lithe, and light as a wish. Dana explained the basics of the game than let Samantha help her choose cards to play. The kid took to the game like a fish to water, and when they disbanded a half hour later Dana found herself breaking about even for the night, with Samantha having caught a few things she herself had missed.

"Being a corrupting influence on my little sister?" Mulder asked, sticking his head into the dinning room. Dana smirked at him in response, but Samantha launched herself off Dana's lap and ran over to her brother.

"Fox! Dana showed me how to play Poker! I want to teach you, so we can play sometime!" This caused Bill and Charlie to break up into loud brays of laughter, the idea of a little girl teaching a grown man to play Poker.

Mulder ignored them and smiled at his sister. "She did, did she? Well, it just so happens that I know how to play Poker, so maybe we'll have to have Dana over some night so you and her can win lots of money from me, how does that sound?" The grin on Samantha's face was answer enough for him. "But I think it's time to head home for tonight, so we can let the Scully's exchange their presents. You and I are the last stragglers."

Dana stood up and stretched. "You can't leave before presents." she told Mulder, giving him a wink as she left the room. Maggie was calling for the kids to come into the living room.

Mulder gave her a puzzled look and followed her. "What do you mean? I don't want to interrupt your family-."

Dana interrupted him, putting a finger to her lips. "You're not interrupting anything; Samantha has gifts under the tree from all of us. My Mom coordinated it when I told her you were coming over with her."

Mulder looked dumbfounded. "Scully, they didn't have to do that! And why didn't you tell me, I didn't bring-"

Scully waved to silence him. "I didn't want you buying for my whole family. You're piggybacking off my gifts. Now sit down and hush and let the kids have their fun."

Samantha sat on the floor in between Ashleigh and Matt. Mulder sat next to Scully on one of the love seats, feeling less awkward than he would've expected. Bill's daughter Mary-Margaret, Maggie Scully's namesake, sat on her Father's lap and Ricky sat on his Mother Eileen's lap. Danny lean-sat on the armrest of the couch next to his Father, trying to look bored with all the family fun time but not quite succeeding. Maggie crouched next to the tree, fishing out gifts and passing them around.

Samantha eyed the growing pile of gifts beside her with barely controlled excitement. There was one from Maggie, one from Charlie and his wife, one from Bill and his wife, and one from Dana as well.

"Alright now, let the baby open a present first, than all you older kiddos can tear in." Maggie called over the growing roar of excited children. "Bill, here's your gift from me, and here's yours, Charlie. Dana-" Bill intercepted Dana's gift and pretended to hide it. Dana mimed a playful punch at him. Though she had wanted to strangle him approximately half the time since she was about six years old, he was still her brother and she still loved him. The holidays brought out the warm and fuzzy feelings. At least, they did now that they were adults. Dana still recalled a particularly severe temper tantrum she'd had the Christmas she was eight over Bill's teasing. Bill relented and handed his sister the small bright green package his Mother had passed down for her.

"That looks like it's it, everyone ready?" Maggie asked, standing up. "Oh, I almost missed one. Here, Fox, this is for you."

Mulder froze, a look of embarrassed horror on his face. "What? Oh, no, really, you didn't have..." he trailed off into silence at the look on Mrs. Scully's face and took the gift. "Thank you. Very much. You really didn't have to."

It took a little encouragement to get Baby Mary to tear into her package, but once she got started there was no stopping her. As soon as Mary's first package was opened the rest of the kids tore into theirs, Samantha a bit tentatively, but her reservation faded quickly as she revealed a brown-haired Barbie Doll in the first package. Ashleigh had already opened an identical one, except for the hair color. Ashleigh's barbie Doll was a red-head.

"Look Fox! I got a Barbie! And look, her hair's like mine!" Samantha cried, practically screaming at the top of her lungs, waving the box at him. Samantha'd had a few Barbies in the 70's, but they had all been blonde back then. She dove back into the small stack of gifts excitedly before her brother could respond.

Mulder turned to Scully, meaning to thank her for arranging all of this, but the words died in his throat. Dana's gift still sat in her hands unopened. She was too busy watching her nieces and nephews and Samantha open their gifts. Mulder had never seen her family life before, had never seen her so much like a regular person, and in that moment she was so beautiful that it took his breath away.

Scully never turned to him until the kids finished opening their gifts. Samantha and Ashleigh's presents were identical. They each had a Barbie, and a horse to go with it that actually walked when you pressed the button in its side. They each had two board games, Clue and Twister. And they each had new charm bracelets. Both girls were already wearing the bracelets, and unpacking their new Barbies and horses with incredible alacrity.

Scully smiled at her partner. "I think Sam's having a good time."

Mulder gave her one of his half-grins. "Yeah, you could say that. She's been wanting a barbie with brown hair since we were kids, but they never made them in the 70's." Mulder gestured to the box in her hand. "You didn't open your gift."

Dana gestured to the box in his hand. "You first. I want to see what you think of it, my Mom picked it out and wouldn't tell me what she got for you." When he didn't move immediately she added "I'll open mine in a minute, as soon as you open yours."

Giving in, Mulder sighed and unwrapped the package. His eyes widened and his jaw dropped, and a totally unaffected 'Wow!' popped out. It was a baseball, signed by several of the current New York Yankees.

"Do you like it?" Maggie asked, looking over. "My husband served on the same ship with the current owner's brother. They became fairly good friends and stayed in touch after they came home. Dana said you liked baseball, particularly the Yankees, so I pulled a few strings."

" _Like_ it? This is amazing! Thank you, Mrs. Scully!" Mulder was aware that he had reverted back to childhood, but he couldn't bring himself to care. As a child he had dreamed of being on the New York Yankee's team, and one of his greatest childhood memories had been his Father taking him and Samantha to New York to see a home game. Samantha had been six and he had been ten. He had always loved baseball, but after that day it had taken on a different power over him, and he had eaten, slept, and breathed baseball for the next two years, until Samantha had disappeared. Baseball had still been a constant companion after that, he had even played a bit in high school and college though admittedly not as much as he had played Basketball, but after Samantha disappeared it lost its driving force.

Dana smiled at him while he wasn't looking, still engrossed with the gift. She'd had a feeling her Mother'd had something good up her sleeve, but she hadn't realized how special the gift was going to be. Seeing him light up like a little kid on Christmas morning made her see him in a different light, not as a work partner and work friend, driven by his intense search for the truth, but as a person, a real person, a real friend…

Mulder looked up from the gift and caught Scully's staring gaze. He smiled at her, and she blinked and looked away, almost embarrassed. "You still didn't open yours." he told her, wearing his peculiar half smile.

Dana glanced down at the small package wrapped in shimmery green paper that she held in her hand. At first glance it seemed like it was obviously a jewelry box, but it was lighter than it should have been and an awkward shape, too short and wide to be a necklace or bracelet. She tore the paper off and opened the white cardboard box to reveal a pair of tickets to a Broadway show.

"Mom! You got them!" It was Scully's turn to revert to childhood. Though her parents had kept her and her siblings well-cultured, especially with all their moving to various countries and locations, Dana had never been to see a musical or play until she was in college. She had gone on an impromptu trip to New York City just after Finals in her third year of college with a couple of school friends, and they had seen _The King and I_ on Broadway. Dana had been enchanted, and had been dying to go back ever since. She had lamented to her Mother how much she would have liked to have seen _Miss Saigon_ on Broadway when she was visiting her on Thanksgiving, and now here were the tickets.

"You got lucky with those, Dana. They're for the last performance on January 7th. They only had a couple left." Maggie Scully told her, smiling at her daughter's clear delight. "I got you two of them, I figured you could take a, friend, along with you. It's not any fun to go alone."

Dana ignored the obvious implication as she got up from the loveseat to give her Mother a hug and a kiss. "Thanks, Mom. You're the best."

Samantha wandered over and climbed up on her brother's lap. She picked the baseball up and turned it over, looking at the names. She handed it back to him. "Far-out gift, Fox." When she didn't immediately slide back off his lap, he took the hint that she was getting tired. He still had trouble dealing with 'kid hints' and didn't always catch them, but he had learned that Samantha climbing up to sit on his lap usually meant she was tired and ready to get going. He glanced at his watch and saw that it was after ten and his eyebrows went up. "Come on, Bug. It's late, we better get going or Santa might skip over you."

Samantha gave her brother a reproachful look, both at the nickname he'd bestowed on her and because of the suggestion that Santa might skip over her. "Santa doesn't skip over anyone." she informed her brother, her typical sass dripping from every word.

"Oh yes he does." Mulder replied, standing up and setting Samantha on her feet. "If you're not in bed and asleep by the time Santa's ready to come by than he skips right over you. He might come back around again if he has time when he's all done, but he doesn't make any promises; he's a busy man." Mulder bent down and started cleaning up the paper and packaging from Samantha and Ashleigh's toys.

"Nuh-uh!" Samantha retorted, handing some of the trash to her brother absently.

"Yuh-huh!" Fox responded, and Samantha giggled at him. "Fine, don't believe me. But you'd be better safe than sorry, just in case I am right, don't you think?"

Samantha rolled her eyes at her brother and made a face, but there was a noticeable added pep to her cleaning and gift gathering.

Charlie and Dana used Mulder's exit to take leave themselves. Bill was staying at Maggie's for the week they were in from California, but both Dana and Charlie were local. The two Mulders struggled through the gaggle of Scullies, saying thank yous and farewells on their way through.

Maggie Scully gave Samantha a hug and than surprised Mulder with one as well. Caught off guard, he froze for a moment before awkwardly returning the gesture. "Thank you both for coming. Don't be strangers now, both of you. You're welcome any time."

"Thank you, Mrs. Scully. I appreciate it, very much." Mulder and Samantha slid towards the door while Ashleigh vied for her Grandmother's attention so she could get home. Apparently Mulder's warning to Samantha had been overheard and deeply considered by Scully's niece as well. Just as he was about to slip out the door Maggie caught him again.

"Oh, Fox, before you go! If you don't have any plans tomorrow night, I would be very happy if you would join us for Christmas Dinner. It's just going to be Dana, the boy's families and I. Dana can give you the details, I'm sure."

Mulder thanked her again, ignoring the knots in his stomach. He knew Dana and her family were trying to help him give Samantha the family experience for Christmas because of everything she'd been through, and because it was her first Christmas without her parents, but he still wasn't entirely comfortable with the whole family thing. But how could he refuse when she put it to him that way? He left the invitation open, but he already knew he was going. Samantha had heard the invitation, and between her and Dana he knew they would wear him down.

Dana caught up to them as they were getting in the car. "Thank you for coming, Mulder. I hope it wasn't too excruciating for you."

Mulder gave her one of his most winsome grins. "I think I was able to survive the torture. So much so that I guess Sammy and I will be joining you all for dinner tomorrow."

"Mulder, you don't have to do that." she told him, kicking herself as the words left her mouth. "I mean, you don't have to feel pressured to come over. I know my Mom can be rather, persuasive."

Mulder laughed. "Yeah, yeah she can. She's very sweet. I appreciate everything she's doing for us, what all of your family has been doing. So, me and Sam will see you tomorrow for dinner, alright?"

Scully smiled. "Sounds good. Merry Christmas, Mulder." As she watched them pull away, she felt a twinge of regret that she hadn't hugged him goodbye.

Samantha was sound asleep by the time Mulder parked the car outside of his apartment, and he took advantage of this good fortune by carrying her inside instead of waking her up. She was groggily awake by the time they got into the apartment, but was out like a light again almost immediately after putting on her Christmas Pjs and getting into bed. Just to be safe, Mulder waited another 45 minutes before pulling his cell phone out. "Yeah, it's me. Yes, she's asleep, she's been out for almost an hour now. Alright. Alright, I'll see you soon."

Scully walked in without knocking when she arrived, being careful to make the least noise she possibly could. Her arms were full of wrapped gifts. Since Samantha was always with her brother, he hadn't had any time to do any Christmas shopping. Scully had volunteered, and had not only done the shopping, but had wrapped all of the gifts, too.

"Scully, you didn't have to do all that, I could have wrapped them." Mulder protested, taking boxes from her and ignoring the incredulous look she gave him.

"Mulder, I've seen the way you wrap. She would never believe in Santa again. And you would be wrapping until this time tomorrow night. I spread it out over the last few days. Besides, I had fun with it."

They took turns carrying everything in, one of them staying in the apartment at all times so that Samantha was never left alone. It took seven trips for them to carry everything. The last thing to come in was a small pink animal carrier. Inside, something was occasionally protesting with a high-pitched mewl.

"I wrapped the ones from you in blue, the ones from Santa in the red and green, and the purple ones are from me." Scully informed him matter-of-factly before picking up the pink carrier and removing its contents. "And this, is your new friend, as requested." The kitten was all orange and white fluff, no more than 6 or 7 weeks old. It's eyes were still a deep baby blue.

Mulder took the kitten from her and eyed it mistrustfully. "I can't believe she talked me into this." He glanced at Scully and was unsurprised to see her smirking at him. "I like cats, I do, I just don't have much luck with pets."

Dana patted his back. "If you can handle taking care of a child, I think a kitten will be a piece of cake. I wouldn't worry about it."

Mulder let the little creature loose while Scully set up a litter box and dishes for it. The kitten stubbornly followed him as he started putting gifts under the tree, smacking at the ornaments. Mulder eyed it mistrustfully again, but a smile curled the corners of his lips in spite of himself.

After fixing Mulder's gift setup Scully settled onto his couch, clasping her hands in her lap a bit awkwardly. It was going on one in the morning already.

"Can I get you something to drink?" Mulder asked her from the kitchen, pitching his voice a bit low to keep from disturbing Samantha. When she agreed, he poured them both a glass of wine.

They sat on the couch in mildly uncomfortable silence for a few moments, taking in the quiet and the ambiance. The apartment was bedecked in green and red for Christmas and blue and silver for Hanukah. The Christmas Tree was a live tree, at Samantha's insistence, and was decorated in flashing multicolored lights, mismatched ornaments, and approximately a half ton of tinsel. An electric Menorah on the coffee table twinkled semi-realistically, four of the faux flames glowing and four yet to be lit. All around the apartment were Samantha's handmade decorations.

Scully turned to him to say something, and as she did he turned to her as well. Their eyes met, and before they knew it they were locked in a kiss. It wasn't entirely unlike the New Years kiss they had shared the year before, but it was deeper, longer, more passionate. When they broke apart neither of them could seem to look at each other.

When Scully spoke, her voice was soft. "Mulder… where are we going with this?"

His smile was gentle as he tipped her chin up towards him. "I don't know. But I'm looking forward to finding out." With that, he kissed her again.


	4. Chapter 4

Monday, December 25th, 2000

Christmas Day

Samantha's shrill screech of delight woke Mulder and Scully at about a quarter till seven. Scully had never managed to make it home, having fallen asleep sometime around three in the morning with her head resting on Mulder's shoulder. Now she found herself trying to look more awake than she was and pretending that she had just arrived, having come early to watch Samantha open up her gifts. She scooted down to her end of the couch and stretched as Samantha came hurrying down the hallway holding the kitten tight to her chest. A tag attached to the kitten's collar informed her that it was from Santa.

"FOX! Fox, look! Look! Santa brought me a kitten!" she exclaimed, brandishing the kitten out in front of her briefly before holding it tightly to her chest again, almost protectively. In her excitement over the cat she hadn't even realized that Scully was there yet. "Can you believe it? Santa actually got me a KITTEN!" In her excitement, her voice was almost too shrill to be intelligible.

Mulder yawned and knuckled grit out of his eyes, trying to wake up. "Well, would you look at that? I didn't even hear him come in last night..." Mulder glanced to the end of the couch. "Hey, when did you get here?" he asked Scully, playing along but not sure why he was so anxious that Samantha not realize she had spent the night.

Samantha looked up and squealed in delight again. "Dana! Look what Santa brought for me! I got a kitten!" She gave the kitten a dopey look of loving adoration and hugged it tightly before planting a smacking kiss right on its furry cheek. To its credit, the kitten took this all perfectly in stride. Samantha looked up at Dana with an absolutely beautiful smile that expressed her utter shock and delight perfectly. "I have a kitten… I can't believe I have a kitten!"

Dana laughed at the little girl's antics. "I see that, that's awesome!" She started to add that Samantha must have been a very good girl this year to get a gift like that, but cut off the remark before it left her mouth. For all intents and purposes, the kid hadn't even existed for most of the last year.

Samantha plopped down on the floor and corralled the kitten on her lap, facing Mulder and Scully on the couch. Utterly enthralled with her new pet, she hadn't even noticed that there were gifts under the tree.

Mulder yawned again and stretched, still trying to wake up. "Hey, Samantha, don't you want to get into the rest of your gifts?" he asked, nodding towards the tree when she gave him a questioning look. When she turned to the tree her mouth dropped open in shock.

"There's _more_?" she squealed, her eyes as wide as saucers. She clearly wasn't expecting anything else since she had received her coveted cat. "Is _all_ of that for _me_?"

Mulder chuckled. "Most of it is, go take a look." And that was all it took to get Samantha moving. By 8:30 the gifts were all unwrapped and the stocking emptied out. The kitten thought the discarded wrapping paper and ribbons were the best things in the world, and Samantha was sitting practically underneath the tree, a red and white candy cane in her mouth and all over her lips, giggling at the zooming ball of fur as it pounced in the trash pile. Both her brother and Scully had been rewarded with hugs and sticky kisses for the mountains of gifts, which included a Playstation with five new games, a brand new computer, an American Girls Doll that looked just like her, three CDs, a pile of coloring books, a 120 count box of Crayolas, a small easel, three Barbie Dolls, seven new books (and a gift card to Barnes & Noble to get more), a purple Nanopet, a new baseball glove, bat, ball, jersey, and cap, four Disney movies (plus a few others), hair barrettes, scrunchies, and headbands, two dozen mini bottles of nail polish in various colors, plus glitters and metallics, a set of five mini body sprays, two play-doh sets, five different board games, a soccer ball and a basketball, a hula hoop, a jump rope, roller skates, a bicycle, two yo-yo's, and a bunch of new outfits, along with a small menagerie of other odds and ends, plus a stocking full of candy and other assorted baubles.

There were a few gifts under the tree addressed to Mulder from Santa, including a few ties and sweaters, and a new pair of roller skates to go along with Samantha's. From Scully there was a new silver watch with a bright green glow-in-the-dark face. His old watch had been destroyed on a recent case, and he had lamented more than once that he kept forgetting to replace it.

When all of the other gifts were unwrapped, Mulder slipped a small silver-wrapped box from its hiding place. Samantha giggled when she saw it, laying upside down under the tree and teaching the kitten how to swat at the low hanging ornaments, her third candy cane of the day in her mouth. This one was blueberry and her lips and tongue were an alarming oxygen-deprived shade of blue. She and her brother had spent an entire afternoon trying to find the perfect gift and both siblings were eager to see Scully's reaction, albeit for somewhat different reasons. Mulder watched her unwrap it with a somewhat nervously expectant smile on his face.

Scully's jaw dropped when she opened the small box to reveal a matching necklace and earring set. The tear-shaped emerald pendant on the necklace was surrounded by tiny diamonds and hung from a thin gold chain. The stud earrings were identical to the pendant and also set in gold. The pendant and studs were large enough to be noticeable but not quite large enough to be ostentatious.

"Oh my God, Mulder! I can't take this, it must have cost you a fortune!" Watching her shock, Mulder decided he liked the way she looked when she was surprised. Not wearing make-up, freckles showed across her cheeks, and seemed to pop out even more in her wonderment. Her widened eyes looked an even brighter shade of blue than usual.

Mulder shrugged demurely. "It only took a small personal loan. I'll have it paid off by the time Sam graduates with her Ph. D." he responded, smirking. Scully gave him one of her patented incredulous looks.

Samantha scooted across the carpet to them, the kitten hot on her heels. It seemed to have taken an instant liking to its exuberant young master and hadn't bothered with Scully or Mulder since Samantha had awoken. "Do you like it, Dana? I helped Fox pick it out. He said we had to find you something really, REALLY nice because you've been doing a lot for us." Samantha informed her, making her brother blush.

Scully leaned forward and kissed Samantha's cheek, than leaned over and kissed Mulder's. "It's gorgeous, thank you both very much." She couldn't refuse a gift from a happy eight year old. Both Mulder and his sister wore bashfully pleased looks of surprise.

While Mulder and Samantha cleaned up all the wrapping paper, much to the kitten's chagrin, Scully whipped up a big batch of her Grandma Baker's Special Christmas Morning French Toast. Eloise Baker was Margaret Scully's Mother, and even though the Scully Family moved all over the world she made sure she was able to be with them every year on Christmas, and every Christmas morning she made her special French Toast for breakfast. Dana was a bit surprised to find herself so excited to pass the tradition on. She knew that Charlie did the same thing with his kids every Christmas, too. Bill she wasn't sure about.

Samantha removed the kitten from the black trash bag full of wrapping paper; it was trying to go along with the last clump of ribbon. Frowning suddenly, she held the kitten out to her brother. "Fox, is my kitten a boy or a girl?"

Mulder took the kitten with one hand and the bag of trash with the other as he walked towards the kitchen. Samantha danced along beside him nervously, as though he might forget which thing he was supposed to be throwing out. Once he relieved himself of the garbage bag he lifted the kitten's tail up and took a cursory glance before handing it back to his sister. "Looks like a girl to me."

Samantha gave him a quizzical look. "How can you tell that by looking at her butt?" she asked, apparently completely flabbergasted. Mulder froze, thankfully not facing his sister as a look of utter horror came over his face.

Scully appearing with an overflowing plate of spicy-smelling French Toast saved Mulder from an impromptu birds and bees talk, and as they sat down to eat and Samantha apparently forgot her question he was aware that he had never in his life been nearly so thankful for an interruption.

Scully was out the door by 10; she had to meet her Mother and brothers for Mass at noon. Mulder promised to be at her Mother's with Samantha by 4:30-5, and when Samantha wasn't looking Scully stole a quick kiss from him. He happily returned it, the gesture being an indication from both of them that the night before was not an isolated incident. Scully left the apartment with a light heart, while Mulder felt that his might be overflowing as he walked into the living room to see Samantha sitting on the couch with the kitten. Samantha had christened her 'Dinah' over breakfast, after the kitten in Alice in Wonderland as well as a favorite song of Samantha's called "I've Been Workin' on the Rail Road". There was yet another candy cane hanging out of her mouth, this one a cherry-flavored rainbow cane. She was watching some parade on the TV, and the kitten was apparently sound asleep on her lap. She looked up as her brother came into the room.

Scooting the candy cane to one corner of her mouth she talked out of the other corner. "Are we going to visit Mommy and Daddy before we go over to Mrs. Scully's for dinner?" she asked like it was the most perfectly normal thing in the world.

Mulder sat down on the couch beside her. "Sure, we can do that if you want to." He had been hoping to sneak a nap in for an hour or two, but he certainly wasn't going to tell her no. "What made you want to go today?" He was moderately surprised; Samantha hadn't even mentioned their parents much except in passing and she certainly hadn't mentioned anything about visiting.

Samantha shrugged. "Well, I thought we were supposed to. We always visited Grandma and Grandpa after church on Christmas and Easter."

"Oh, yeah. You're right, I forgot about that." Mulder said, leaning back. Their occasional church visits had ended entirely after Samantha's disappearance, and the holiday visits to the cemetery had ended with his parents divorce because those particular grandparents, Irving and Ruth Mulder, were Bill's Mother and Father. Teena's parents, Roger and Marilyn Kuipers, were buried in West Virginia, too far from Chilmark or Greenwich for holiday visits. Speaking of which…

Mulder sat up suddenly. "Actually, we can't visit Dad today. He's buried in Boston. I'm sorry, Samantha. We can still visit Mom though, she's close by. And we'll go visit Dad whenever you want, tomorrow even. It's just a long drive." Mulder felt ashamed of himself. It had been so long since he had been to his Father's grave, years now, but he still couldn't believe he had forgotten he was buried in Boston.

Samantha agreed without any concern and went back to watching the parade. Mulder took the time to watch her in turn, and a felt a strange ripple of unease work its way through him. He remembered Samantha being a some-what tantrumy child. As the youngest, and the apple of both her parents eye, their little Princess, she had been accustomed to getting her way and throwing fits when she didn't. She had been exceptionally easy-going for the last month, though, and he just didn't get it. Shrugging internally, he pushed the troubling thoughts aside with little reluctance; after all, he'd been spoiling her and hadn't told her 'no' about anything, so what did she have to tantrum about? Anyway, if he tried to go to sleep right now he could still get an hour or so of sleep before they would have to get ready to leave...

Four 'o' clock found brother and sister standing side by side on the gravel road by Teena Mulder's grave. Samantha's hands were tucked into the pockets of her pale blue jeans as she gazed at the stone bearing her Mother's name, her face blank. Both siblings wore dark blue sweatshirts, but only Samantha's had 'Lil' Miss Attitude' written across the front. Mulder put his hand on her shoulder, not sure what else to do. After staring from a distance for several moments Samantha approached the headstone cautiously and stood directly in front of it. Slowly, she reached her hand out, hesitated briefly, than traced her fingers over the etched name and dates before letting her hands fall back to her sides. She stood and stared in silence for a moment longer before spinning around abruptly and walking quickly back to her brother. A sudden gust of cold wind lifted her hair away from her face, and her brother saw a storm churning in her eyes for just a second or so before it disappeared. "Can we go see Dana now, Fox?"

They were in the car and almost out of the cemetery before Samantha spoke again. "Fox, why is Daddy in Boston if Mommy is here? Why aren't they together, like Grandma and Grandpa are?"

Mulder answered her before he stopped to think. It had ceased to particularly bother him many years ago and he didn't think about how Samantha might feel, or the fact that she didn't already know. "Because Mom and Dad got divorced." He winced as soon as the words left his mouth and glanced into the rear view mirror in time to see his sister's shocked and horrified expression.

"Mommy and Daddy got _divorced_?" she squealed, sounding devastated. In the early 70's 'divorce' was still almost a dirty word. Most kids didn't come from split homes, and there was a heavy stigma attached to those who did, especially in a community like Chilmark. "But, why? When did Mommy and Daddy, do that?" Mulder was disconcerted to hear the thick sound of tears in her voice. She seemed to be taking her parent's divorce harder than their deaths.

Mulder pulled the car over to the side of the road just inside the cemetery gates and put it in park before turning around in his seat to look at his sister. "Sam, I'm sorry. I forgot you didn't know." He couldn't look her in her face except in glances, which was enough to reveal the tears running down her cheeks.

"But, why? Why did Mommy and Daddy do that?" she asked, sniffling.

"I don't know, Samantha. They just didn't get along anymore, and they didn't want to live together anymore. It was a long time ago..." Mulder trailed off. "They still loved each other." he lied, hoping to ease her pain.

"When did they, get that, Fox?" Samantha asked quietly, dutifully avoiding the word itself now.

Mulder shrugged uncomfortably. "I don't remember, exactly, it was a long time ago now, I was a teenager..." He left the time period open on purpose. He didn't want to tell Samantha it was less than a year after her disappearance, she was upset enough, but she made the connection on her own. She'd always been a bright kid.

"Was it my fault, Fox? Because I was missing?" Samantha asked softly. "Is that why Mommy and Daddy stopped getting along?"

Mulder didn't even pause; the lies flowed as naturally as truth. "No, Samantha, it didn't have anything to do with you being missing. That made Mom and Dad get closer, you know, from grief. They separated awhile after that. They just grew apart, and decided not being together would be best for them. Divorce started becoming more common, and people started to realize that sometimes people just aren't meant to stay together and it became more accepted. You'll understand it more when you get older, Kiddo."

Samantha was giving him a mistrustful look. "Were you upset about it?" she asked him. Her tone suggested she didn't entirely trust his explanation and suspected he was trying to placate her, but her tears were beginning to slow just the same.

Mulder shrugged uncomfortably. He remembered with complete clarity the cold drizzly April day in 1974 when they moved from the house in Chilmark. Samantha had only been missing a couple months than. He had still been twelve, not turning thirteen until October of that year. He was moving with his Mother to Greenwich, to a much smaller house with three bedrooms. Teena had set up one of those rooms as Samantha's, for when her daughter returned, identical to their home in Chilmark. Mulder remembered his Father shaking his hand as they stood outside of the house in Chilmark, the moving van packed and ready to go, his Mother waiting for him in the car. He hadn't hugged him, but had shaken his hand, like a man, and told him to take care of his Mother. He remembered the way it had felt as he stared out the rain-splashed car window as Chilmark faded behind him, like the final piece of his world falling utterly apart. He pulled himself out of the painful reverie to answer his sister, and was surprised to find that he was very close to tears himself.

"Yeah. Yeah, I was upset, at first. I was sad. But I just wanted Mom and Dad to be happy again, and being apart seemed to make them happier." The car fell into silence as he remembered and Samantha absorbed. "Don't worry about it, Samantha." Mulder finally said. "It was a long time ago, and wherever they are now I'm sure they are happy."

"Do you think Mommy and Daddy are together in Heaven, Fox?" Samantha asked, and the hope in her voice hurt him. He was happy Samantha had never had to see what their parents' relationship had become, because it clearly would have hurt her far more than it had him. Or maybe he just refused to admit how painful it had actually been for him.

"Yeah, Samantha. Sure. Why not? I don't think anybody fights in Heaven, I think that's all just for when we're here on Earth." He replied diplomatically, but it seemed to satisfy her and she sat back and wiped the last of the tear trails from her face. Her nod was enthusiastic when he asked if she was ready to go to Mrs. Scully's now, and by the time they got there she was apparently completely back to normal.

Friday, December 29th, 2000

The Last Night of Hanukah

Samantha hurried around the small square dining table, setting places for herself, her brother, and Scully. Scully had agreed to come over after work to celebrate the last day of Hanukah with them, and Samantha was buzzing with excitement. She had dressed herself for the occasion in a dark blue crushed velvet dress with a white lace bib, white stockings, and black shoes with silver buckles. Her long dark hair was pulled back with a silver and faux crystal barrette. "When is Dana coming?" she called to her brother impatiently, removing the orange kitten from the table. "She has to get here before dark! I want to show her how to light the menorah!"

Mulder stepped into the dinning room, a half smile on his face. "Calm down, Sam. She'll be over as soon as she gets out of work, it's not the end of the world if we're a little late with the lighting. And it's not a 'menorah', it's a 'hanukiah'. A menorah only has seven branches, a hanukiah is the one that has nine." In re-teaching himself the basics of Hanukah he had learned a fair bit himself and was trying to pass the knowledge along to his sister.

Samantha gave him a petulant look. "Daddy always called it a menorah." she retorted, her tone suggesting that her brother was thus clearly an idiot and that their Father obviously knew best.

Mulder bit his tongue to keep from retorting inappropriately. "A lot of people call them menorahs. They're still technically hanukiahs." he disappeared back into the kitchen before she could reply, and before his latkes could burn. Samantha stuck her tongue out at his turned back and hugged Dinah to her chest.

Scully arrived about 20 minutes after dusk, slightly disheveled and very tired from a long day at work, a long week, but Samantha's excited greeting at the door with Dinah at her heels brought a smile to her face nonetheless. She gave Samantha a tight hug. "Hey Honey, Happy Hanukah! Sorry I'm late." As she spoke Samantha took her hand and pulled her into the house.

"Come on, Dana, I want to show you how to light the menorah!" Samantha insisted, tugging on her. "Fox, come on, Dana's here, we have to light the menorah!"

Mulder appeared in the doorway, drying his hands on a hand towel. "Hanukiah. And I'll be out in a minute. I have to take the salmon out."

While they waited for Mulder, Dana complimented Samantha on her pretty dress.

"My Mom picked it out for me to be my Hanukah dress." Samantha said blithely. "It was too pretty not to wear, right?" she asked, twirling to show it off. The cut of the dress screamed 1970's style.

Scully's smile was slightly awkward. "It's a very beautiful dress, your Mom had very good taste." Samantha beamed at the compliment towards her Mother, but Mulder's entrance ended the conversation, to Scully's relief. "Smells good in here, Mulder. I'm impressed."

"I'm not sure if I should take that as a compliment or not." he retorted. "Tonight's menu is ginger glazed salmon, potato latkes, and creamed spinach. For dessert we have home-made jelly donuts."

Scully laughed at him. "Definitely a compliment, and I am _very_ impressed. And starving, I can't wait to eat."

"It's all ready whenever you ladies are." Mulder told them, gesturing towards the table, but Samantha was on her feet before Mulder or Scully could take a step.

"Wait! We have to light the last candle first." Samantha said. When he brother looked reluctant she added "They were supposed to be lit at dusk, we're already late." The firm finality in her voice and the pouty set of her bottom lip had Mulder turn around with a sigh.

"Alright Samantha, fine. But hurry up, alright?" he requested impatiently.

Samantha shot him a dirty look as she scampered over to the plastic electrical menorah/hanukiah. "Do you know the story of Hanukah, Dana?" she asked, pausing before lighting the 9th candle.

"Um, sort of." Scully faltered. "It's the Maccabees, and how the oil didn't run out, right?"

Samantha giggled. "Kind of." She than spent the next ten minutes or so filling in the finer details for Scully, until her brother was ready to sigh loudly and exaggeratedly check his watch. Finally she recited the appropriate prayer, albeit in English, and flicked the last candle on. "And that's how you light the menorah." she told Scully.

Mulder stood up, delighted that he was finally able to serve the much anticipated meal. He knew that their observations were not very strict, but he didn't fill Samantha in on that. Their observance of Hanukah and Passover as children had been barely cursory, and he was only doing it now to honor his Father's memory, and to appease Samantha.

Dinner went over without a hitch, with both Samantha and Scully complimenting the meal. After dinner Samantha and Mulder taught Scully how to play dreidals for gold-foil wrapped chocolate coins and Jolly Ranchers.

"Your teeth are going to fall out if you keep eating that much candy." Mulder told his sister after catching her sneaking a Jolly Rancher from the pot in the center of the table for the second time.

Samantha stuck her tongue out at him. "No they won't; I brush them twice a day, it washes all the sugar off."

Mulder slid his chair back and stood up. "Speaking of brushing teeth, I think it's about time you get in your pajamas and get those teeth brushed tonight, huh?"

Samantha whined and sulked, but only a bit, a sure sign that she was tired. As soon as she disappeared into the bathroom, Scully stole a kiss.

"When are you planning on telling her?" she whispered to Mulder, pitching her voice low in case Samantha was trying to listen to the conversation.

Mulder inhaled the clean scent of her hair. "After New Years." he answered, rather evasively. He didn't know why he was so anxious about telling Samantha that they were taking their relationship to the next level. She clearly adored Scully, and had suggested it from the beginning. But, still…

Scully didn't bother to follow up the question, she just wrapped her arms around Mulder. She figured that he would introduce Samantha to the idea once he had her settled into school, and that was fine with her. She was more concerned with how this was going to affect their jobs; she thought Skinner would be much more concerned than Samantha would.

The next few days passed in a blur. Scully spent New Years Eve with Mulder and Samantha at Mulder's apartment. Samantha stayed awake until midnight to ring in the new year, and drank sparkling grape juice while Mulder and Scully drank champagne. Mulder and Scully took her outside to light sparklers and set off small fire crackers at midnight, much to several of the neighbor's apparent chagrin. Nearby someone was setting off real fireworks, visible just over the trees near the apartment. The trio sat down on the lawn to watch the show, which lasted a good twenty minutes or more. Mulder carried Samantha back upstairs; she was almost out cold before they headed back up.

Scully spent the night again, this time under the pretense of being unable to drive after drinking the champagne. New Years Day was again spent at Mrs. Scully's, but this time there was no Bill or Charlie or their families. Bill had already gone back to California, while Charlie was spending the day with his wife's family. Maggie was clearly glad for the company, and although her daughter had not yet told her about the new developments, it was clear enough to her.

Mulder made sure Samantha was in bed early. She was signed up for the local public school, and her first day was going to be January 2nd, when all the kids went back from Winter Break. It was also his first day back to work. Tucking her in, Dinah curled up on the pillow next to her head, he gave her a calming smile.

"You excited for tomorrow?" he asked Samantha, smoothing her hair back from her forehead.

Samantha gave him a half shrug. "I guess so. Are you excited to go back to work with Dana?"

"Yeah, I'm excited to go back to work. It was nice spending all of my time at home with you, though. But I bet you're tired of being stuck with your big brother all the time, and ready to find some kids your age to play with." Mulder told her, winking.

Samantha giggled at him. "I hope they don't all hate me."

"They won't hate you. You'll probably be the most popular kid at school." Mulder reassured her. He hesitated before continuing. "But, I have a favor to ask you."

Samantha gave him a quizzical look. "A favor from me?"

"Yeah, from you. Kind of for you, too." He paused again before plunging forward. "Don't tell the kids or your teacher when you were really born, or that you were missing, or anything. Don't tell anyone anything about all that at all."

"How come, Fox?" Samantha asked, looking confused.

"Because people aren't going to understand, Samantha." he told her, a bit sadly. "We don't even understand what happened, and if you tell people they might get afraid. It, it'll just be better for you if you don't tell people about it, okay?"

Samantha nodded. "Oh. Alright. But, what do I tell them about Mommy and Daddy?"

"You don't have to tell them anything. Just tell them you have a brother who is a lot older than you who you live with because your Mom and Dad passed away. Tell them they had cancer." Mulder suggested.

Samantha looked up at her brother. "Fox, how _did_ Mommy and Daddy, die? Did they both have cancer?"

A silence blanketed the room as Mulder squirmed for an answer. He couldn't give her the truth, not at eight years old. Their Father had been murdered, shot, and their Mother had taken her own life when diagnosed with a terminal illness. There was no way he was going to tell Samantha that.

His voice was very soft when he replied. "They both got sick, Samantha. Don't worry about with what exactly, okay? I'll tell you some other time, when you're older. Okay?" His eyes were pleading, expecting Samantha to pursue the question anyway.

For a moment it seemed like she was going to. But than she just folded up into herself a bit. "Okay, Fox."

He kissed her goodnight and told her he loved her, and she responded in kind, but there was a distance to her behavior. She was very clearly still brooding on her question, and Mulder didn't know how to help her. He didn't want to lie, but he just couldn't tell her the truth, either.

Mulder held Samantha's hand as he walked her into the elementary school the next morning. She was dressed in the school uniform, a plaid skirt, white buttoned blouse, knee-high black socks, and black leather shoes. Her hair was pulled back from her face with a green barrette on each side and a plain brown JanSport book bag on her back was full of new school supplies. Outside of the classroom Mulder squatted in front of his sister. "You going to be alright?" he asked her.

Though she looked nervous, Samantha nodded. Mulder gave her a hug. "Good. I'll be waiting for you right out front as soon as school is over, okay? Than you, Scully, and I are going to go out for a special dinner, okay?" Samantha's smile was answer enough, and Mulder stood to watch her walk into the classroom. He figured she was doing better than he was when she didn't cry but he burst into silent tears walking back down the hallway and out to his car.


End file.
